Boeing is moving toward higher 737 MAX production as CEO Kelly Ortberg says 787 output is rising and MAX 7 certification is nearing.
Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg used his appearance at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference in New York on 27 May 2026 to lay out what may be one of the clearest snapshots yet of Boeing’s near-term commercial airplane recovery plan: push the 737 MAX line from 42 to 47 aircraft per month, move the 787 Dreamliner from eight toward 10 per month, and finally close out long-delayed certification work on the 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10.
For Boeing, all three are deeply connected. Higher production rates mean more deliveries. More deliveries mean more cash. But after years of scrutiny over manufacturing quality, certification delays, supply chain strain, and the lingering impact of the 2024 Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 door-plug incident, Ortberg’s message was not simply that Boeing wants to build more airplanes.
It was that Boeing believes it is ready to do so more carefully.
737 MAX Production Is Moving Toward 47 Per Month
The most immediate update came on the 737 program, where Ortberg said Boeing has completed what he called the FAA’s capstone review for a move to 47 aircraft per month.
“We’ve passed the capstone review for rate 47,” Ortberg said. “So, we are now in the process of running the line at the 47 a month rate.”
That is a meaningful step for Boeing’s most important commercial airplane program. The company had moved to 42 per month last fall, and Ortberg said the ramp to that level had gone well, with key performance indicators remaining positive. The next step, he said, is to stabilize the production system at the higher rate.
“It’ll probably take us a few months of stabilization there,” Ortberg said, adding that Boeing “should be there in the next couple of months.”
Reuters also reported Wednesday that FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the agency had endorsed Boeing’s move from 42 to 47 aircraft per month and was “absolutely comfortable” with that increase. The FAA imposed a 38-aircraft-per-month cap in January 2024 after the Alaska Airlines door-plug incident, later allowing Boeing to resume upward production as it demonstrated quality improvements.
Ortberg described Boeing’s rate-increase process as deliberately cautious. Before the capstone review, Boeing had already tested the system at 47 per month and placed “blanks” in the production flow. Those blank positions give the line room to recover if a commodity or supplier area falls behind.
In other words, the company is not simply shoving more airplanes through Renton and hoping the system catches up.
“We’re highly confident that we pulse the system to make sure we’re ready to go to that rate,” Ortberg said.
Everett’s “North Line” Will Matter More at 52 and Beyond
The next major target is 52 aircraft per month, but Ortberg was careful not to put an aggressive date on it. He said Boeing historically has talked about waiting at least six months between rate increases, but he also made clear that the company will move only when the production system and supply chain are ready.
That is where Boeing’s new 737 production line in Everett, Washington, comes in.
Ortberg said the fourth 737 line, which Boeing calls the North Line, is already in place. The company plans to run an airplane through it to qualify the production system. Employees are being hired and trained in Renton before moving to Everett.
The Everett line is not needed for the move to 47 per month, Ortberg said. It becomes important for 52 and beyond.
“We need the Everett line active to move 52 and beyond, not for 47,” he said.
The long-term ambition remains even higher. Ortberg said Boeing would eventually like to get to 63 aircraft per month, but he acknowledged that the industry will be watching the company closely before that happens.
I think the whole world is watching to make sure we make 47 and 52.
Kelly Ortberg | Boeing CEO
“I think the whole world is watching to make sure we make 47 and 52,” he said.
That line may be the most honest summary of where Boeing stands. The demand is there. The backlog is there. But after years of operational and quality crises, Boeing has to earn confidence one production step at a time.
MAX 7 and MAX 10 Certification Near the Final Stages
Certification also remains one of Boeing’s biggest commercial airplane priorities for 2026. Ortberg said the 737 MAX 7 and MAX 10 certification programs are “clearly getting to the final stages,” and that the two variants are now a little more than 80 percent through certification flight testing.
He also said Boeing now has FAA authority for the full remaining flight-test regime, meaning the company does not need additional FAA TIA approvals for those tests.
“So, it’s just a matter of getting through that flight test program,” Ortberg said.
The MAX 7 is expected to receive its type certificate before the MAX 10, though Ortberg said the two should be relatively close together. He acknowledged that the MAX 10 certification package is larger than the MAX 7 package, but said the work is being handled concurrently.
The engine anti-ice system, which has been one of the major issues tied to the delayed certifications, appears to be largely behind Boeing from a testing standpoint. Ortberg said that work has been completed and will first be cut into the 737-8 program.
“We’re through all the testing of the engine anti-ice, and that’s all kind of behind us,” Ortberg said. “We’re pretty confident that we’re not going to see any hiccups here in the remaining regime of flight testing.”
Separately, Reuters reported that FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said the FAA anticipates the 737 MAX 7 will be certified this summer and the MAX 10 before the end of 2026.
The long-awaited certification update is music to the ears of airlines waiting on the smaller and larger ends of the MAX family. Southwest Airlines has long been the key customer tied to the MAX 7, while the MAX 10 is important to carriers such as United Airlines, which has been waiting for the highest-capacity version of the 737 MAX family.
787 Output Is Back to Eight Per Month, But Seats and Engines Remain Watch Items
On the 787 Dreamliner, Ortberg said Boeing has moved to a rate of eight aircraft per month, with a goal of reaching 10 per month by the end of the year. But he also made clear that the path to 10 is not free of friction.
The biggest near-term challenge is not the basic production of the aircraft. It is getting completed aircraft delivered.
Ortberg said complex seating configurations, particularly in higher-end cabins, have created certification delays. In some cases, airplanes are finished but cannot be handed over to customers because the seat certification paperwork is incomplete.
“We have airplanes sitting for customers completely done waiting for seat certifications,” Ortberg said.
He said Boeing is working with the FAA, EASA, and seat manufacturers to improve the process, but expects the company will be “fighting seats throughout the year.” The issue is not typically the supply of the seats themselves, he explained. The seats are installed. The airplanes are built. The paperwork is the bottleneck.
Boeing is also watching engine deliveries. Ortberg said the company fell behind on engines in the first quarter and is working with GE on a recovery plan. That recovery, he said, will be needed before Boeing can raise the 787’s production rate.
The good news for Boeing is that Ortberg does not expect the seat issue to force a production slowdown. The more realistic impact is timing.
“I don’t think we’re going to do anything to slow production down,” he said. “But we may not go to the rate 10 as early as we could have had we not had the challenges.”
For Boeing, the message from Bernstein was one of progress, but not victory laps. The 737 is moving higher. The 787 is building momentum. The MAX 7 and MAX 10 are finally approaching the end of certification. But each milestone still depends on execution, and Ortberg seemed to know that better than anyone.
“This is an execution story,” he said. “So, just focus on execution.”
A full transcript of Ortberg’s comments is available here.
